Optimizing the Tending of Forest Stands with Interactive DecisionMaps to Balance the Financial Incomes and Ecological Risks According to Owner Demands: Case Study in Rakovník, the Czech Republic

Sustainability and the optimal provision of the various ecosystem services is an essential task in forest management. In this study, we deal with the optimization of forest tending to achieve the maximal long-term provision of financial incomes from wood at a minimal level of ecological risks for selected small ownership unit. The methods of interactive decision maps and reasonable goals (IDM/RGM)were connected with a modern forest growth simulator to investigate the four-dimensional optimization space and to produce the complete set of Pareto optimal solutions. The four different types of forest owners as potential decision-makers were simulated, and precise management goals in multidimensional target space were defined. Then, the optimal tending system for each forest owner in three stands, differing by the degree of the naturalness of the species composition, was detected. The multi-criteria analysis suggests that predominantly economically oriented forest management still prevails in the Czech and Slovak Republics, which can be as a source of conflicts among forest owners and other stakeholders. The existence of trade-offs between biodiversity, ecological stability and wood production and different owners’ demands must be taken into account. The possibility of balancing the management risks and wood provision according to the owner’s and other stakeholders’ demands with the aid of the easy-to-apply IDM/RGM methods (and the careful assistance of a specialist experienced in multi-criteria optimization) was introduced. At the same time, the application of real integrative management in small forest areas was demonstrated in practice. After the change of paradigm in forest management, the applied methods should prevent increasing conflicts among owners and society in former socialist countries, which have undergone a fundamental transformation in terms of forest ownership in recent decades

Contrasting effects of environmental change factors on the radial growth of co-occurring European beech and fir trees across Europe

Under predicted climate change, silver fir (Abies alba) and European beech (Fagus sylvatica) are the most likely replacement species for the more heat- and drought-sensitive monocultures of Norway spruce (Picea abies) planted across large parts of continental Europe. Our current understanding of the climate-related adaptation potential of fir and beech mixtures is, however, limited. Here we compile and analyse 2855 tree-ring width (TRW) series from 17 mixed beech-fir forest sites in five European countries. Dendroecological techniques that combine various detrending methods with an application of documented environmental change trends reveal wide variation of radial growth between fir and beech across space and time. Coincidental with peak SO2 emissions, the growth of silver fir declined between 1950 and 1980 at most sites, whereas beech growth increased during this period. Correspondent to a significant warming trend from 1990–2010, average beech growth declined, but silver fir growth increased. Our observations of long-term growth trends support the replacement of spruce monocultures with multi-species mixtures that have demonstrated a higher tolerance of environmental changes

Forest biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and wood production: modeling synergies and trade-offs for ten forest landscapes across Europe

Original ResearchEurope’s forests provide vital habitat for biodiversity and essential ecosystem services whose provision must be sustained or enhanced over the coming century. However, the potential to secure or increase forest ecosystem services, while securing the habitat requirements of taxa remains unclear, especially within the context of uncertain climate and socio-economic developments. To tease out the associated trade-offs and synergies, we used 10 case study landscapes within nine countries throughout Europe. Starting with the current status of the forests in the case study landscapes, we simulated forest development 100 years into the future. Simulations were embedded in three combined climate and socio-economic frame scenarios based on global and European policies which varied in their climate change mitigation efficiency. Scenarios were translated into country specific projections of climate variables, and resultant demands for wood products. Forest management regimes were projected to vary in response to these scenarios at local scales. The specific combinations of alternative forest management practices were based on parallel research and input from local forest stakeholders. For each case study, a specific forest growth simulator was used. In general, the climate scenarios applied did not cause fundamentally different ecosystem service outputs at the case study level. Our results revealed almost no reduction in outcomes for biodiversity indicators with an increase in wood production, and in some cases synergistic results occurred when diversity was actively promoted as part of the management concept. Net carbon uptake was not strongly correlated with biodiversity, indicating that biodiversity-friendly forest management doesn’t need to curtail carbon sequestration. Notably, we obtained heterogeneous results for the relation between sustainable wood production and net carbon uptake. Most scenarios resulted in a more or less reduced net carbon uptake over the long term, often due to stand age class distribution shifts. Levels of sustainable wood production varied widely during the simulation period, from significant increases (Sweden, Lithuania) to minor changes (Slovakia, Turkey) and slight decreases (Ireland, Netherlands). We place our results within the larger context of European forest policy and the challenges of simulating and contrasting forest biodiversity and the ecosystem services that societies depend on outcomes for biodiversity indicators with an increase in wood production, and in some cases synergistic results occurred when diversity was actively promoted as part of the management concept. Net carbon uptake was not strongly correlated with biodiversity, indicating that biodiversity-friendly forest management doesn’t need to curtail carbon sequestration. Notably, we obtained heterogeneous results for the relation between sustainable wood production and net carbon uptake. Most scenarios resulted in a more or less reduced net carbon uptake over the long term, often due to stand age class distribution shifts. Levels of sustainable wood production varied widely during the simulation period, from significant increases (Sweden, Lithuania) to minor changes (Slovakia, Turkey) and slight decreases (Ireland, Netherlands). We place our results within the larger context of European forest policy and the challenges of simulating and contrasting forest biodiversity and the ecosystem services that societies depend oninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

IFT Proteins Accumulate during Cell Division and Localize to the Cleavage Furrow in Chlamydomonas

Intraflagellar transport (IFT) proteins are well established as conserved mediators of flagellum/cilium assembly and disassembly. However, data has begun to accumulate in support of IFT protein involvement in other processes elsewhere in the cell. Here, we used synchronous cultures of Chlamydomonas to investigate the temporal patterns of accumulation and localization of IFT proteins during the cell cycle. Their mRNAs showed periodic expression that peaked during S and M phase (S/M). Unlike most proteins that are synthesized continuously during G1 phase, IFT27 and IFT46 levels were found to increase only during S/M phase. During cell division, IFT27, IFT46, IFT72, and IFT139 re-localized from the flagella and basal bodies to the cleavage furrow. IFT27 was further shown to be associated with membrane vesicles in this region. This localization pattern suggests a role for IFT in cell division

Forest management planning at small-scale level under different climate change scenarios

Current forest management planning focuses on analysing more management alternatives, especially due to the increasing risk of forest disturbances caused by climate changes and also because prompt adaptation of forest management to forest owner requests is needed as a reaction to changes. The utilisation of growth simulators in the acquirement of the information necessary for the decision process has been approved. Their usage allows us to perform quick and effective evaluation of potential forest management approaches in time. Within the case study of the owner management unit in Orava region the main task was to investigative forest management planning possibilities in real conditions from the point of four types of owners with specific preferences for the management of the area. On the base of the proposal of possible management treatments the development of the area was simulated for a period of three decades under three future climate scenarios and the multicriteria optimization of forest management was performed using the method of interaction decision maps. A number of acceptable alternatives were obtained from the optimization procedure, which are characterised by the approach of individual owners. The results representing the stand level were consequently processed to a level of the forest owner unit (forest management plan creation) as formulation of age class distribution. At the level of forest owner unit, age class distribution should converge to normal distribution to ensure permanent production and balance of felling. This approximation can be achieved by regulating fellings at a stand level. The results indicate that it is necessary to respect individual levels of forest management planning, what supports the utilisation of alternative solutions under different climate change scenarios

Association between antibodies to multiple infectious and food antigens and new onset schizophrenia among US military personnel

Introduction: Multiple studies have documented immune activation in many individuals with schizophrenia suggesting that antigens capable of generating a prolonged immune response may be important environmental factors inmany cases of this disorder.While existing studies have found single-agent associations of antibodies to food and neurotropic infectious agents with schizophrenia, a simultaneous examination of multiple agents may shed light on agent interactions or possible etiopathogenic pathways. Methods: We used traditional regression and novel statistical techniques to examine associations of single and combined infectious and food antigens with schizophrenia. We tested 6106 serum samples from 855 cases and 1165 matched controls. Results: Higher antibody levels to casein were borderline significant in the prediction of schizophrenia (HR=1.08, p=0.06). Study participantswith higher cytomegalovirus (CMV) IgG antibody levels had a reduced risk of developing schizophrenia (HR=0.90; p=0.02). While IgG antibodies to gliadin, Toxoplasma gondii, vaccinia, measles, and human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6) showed no significant independent associations with schizophrenia, the increase in antibody levels to several combinations of agents, to include casein, measles, CMV, T. gondii and vaccinia, was predictive of an 18–34% increase in the risk of developing schizophrenia. Conclusion: Certain patterns of antibodies, involving some agents, were predictive of developing schizophrenia, with the magnitude of association rising when the level of antibodies increased to two or more agents. A heightened antibody response to a combination of several infectious/food antigens might be an indicator of an altered immune response to antigenic stimuli